Noise in my head: Voices from the ugly Australian underground

The Ugly Australian Underground documents the music, songwriting, aesthetics and struggles of fifty of Australia’s most innovative and significant bands and artists currently at the creative peak of their careers. The book provides a rare insight into the critically heralded cult music scene in Australia. The author, Jimi Kritzler, is both a journalist and a musician, and is personally connected to the musicians he interviews through his involvement in this music subculture. The interviews are extremely personal and reveal much more than any interview granted to street press or blogs. They deal with not only the music and songwriting processes of each band, but in some circumstances their struggles with drugs, involvement in crime and the death of band members.

Art of sleeping - "Like a Thief"

Research background Art of Sleeping’s “Like a Thief” is an EP of popular music produced at Airlock studios and released in 2012 by the record label Dew Process. “Like a Thief” contributes to studies in the field of music production, as well as furthering research into the role of of national radio play in the development of emerging musicians and artists. Using Australian bands such as Boy and Bear as a reference point, the EP showcases the vocal range of Caleb Hodges and investigates possibilities in extending the modes of musicality possible within the recording studio through use of multiple layering of processed keyboards and electric guitar. Scholars such as Ben Eltham and journalists such as Everett True have written about the importance of the support of Australia’s national youth broadcaster Triple J in the early stages of a band’s development. The approach of the production of the EP was conceived with this agenda in mind, and asked, what can we learn about the relationships between popular music production, distribution and consumption, and the role that national public radio has come to play in the Australian context? Research contribution This project has identified that certain avenues of the music industry continue to aligned with Triple J airplay, that these avenues play an important role in the level of success that artists are likely to achieve, and that targeted understanding of music production techniques and aesthetics may contribute to success in this regard. Research significance The EP’s two singles were both in the top 100 most frequently played tracks on Triple J in 2012, and the band were able to leverage this exposure in securing a record deal with Dew Process, along with being selected as part of the competitive peer review process for festival performances such as Splendour in the Grass. The work received positive peer reviews, with indieshuffle writing: “Brisbane's Art of Sleeping are a truly talented band. … the five-piece gained plenty of local attention earlier this year with their stunning single "Empty Hands.” This was the first single off their new EP, Like a Thief, which was produced by the renowned Yanto Browning (The Medics, The Jungle Giants) … The EP includes five tracks of incredible power and sentiment … Title track "Like a Thief” is … [a] standout, again a vast and expansive song which showcases the band's completeness”

Chemical functionalities of high and low sulfur Australian coals : a case study using micro attenuated total reflectance–fourier transform infrared (ATR–FTIR) spectrometry

The macerals in bituminous coals with varying organic sulfur content from the Early Permian Greta Coal Measures at three locations (Southland Colliery, Drayton Colliery and the Cranky Corner Basin), in and around the Sydney Basin (Australia), have been studied using light-element electron microprobe (EMP) analysis and micro-ATR–FTIR. Electron microprobe analysis of individual macerals reveals that the vitrinite in both the Cranky Corner Basin and Drayton Colliery (Puxtrees seam) samples have similar carbon contents (ca. 78% C in telocollinite), suggesting that they are of equivalent rank. However, the Cranky Corner coals have anomalously low vitrinite reflectance (down to 0.45%) vs. the Drayton materials (ca. 0.7%). They also have very high organic S content (3–6.5%) and lower O content (ca. 10%) than the equivalent macerals in the Drayton sample (0.7% S and 15.6% O). A study was carried out to investigate the impacts of the high organic S on the functional groups of the macerals in these two otherwise iso-rank, stratigraphically-equivalent seams. An iso-rank low-S coal from the overlying Wittingham Coal Measures near Muswellbrook and coals of slightly higher rank from the Greta Coal Measures at Southland Colliery near Cessnock were also evaluated using the same techniques to extend the data set. Although the telocollinite in the Drayton and Cranky Corner coals have very similar carbon content (ca.78% C), the ATR–FTIR spectra of the vitrinite and inertinite macerals in these respectively low S and high S coals show some distinct differences in IR absorbance from various aliphatic and aromatic functional groups. The differences in absorbance of the aliphatic stretching bands (2800–3000 cm−1) and the aromatic carbon (CC) peak at 1606 cm−1 are very obvious. Compared to that of the Drayton sample (0.7% S and 15% O), the telocollinite of the Cranky Corner coal (6% S and 10% O) clearly shows: (i) less absorbance from OH groups, represented by a broad region around 3553 cm−1, (ii) much stronger aliphatic C–H absorbance (stretching modes around 3000–2800 cm−1 and bending modes around 1442 cm−1) and (iii) less absorbance from aromatic carbon functional groups (peaking at 1606 cm−1). Evaluation of the iso-rank Drayton and Cranky Corner coals shows that: (i) the aliphatic C–H absorbances decrease with increasing oxygen content but increase with increasing organic S content and (ii) the aromatic H to aliphatic H ratio (Har/Hali) for the telocollinite increases with (organic) O%, but decreases progressively with increasing organic S. The high organic S content in the maceral appears to be accompanied by a greater proportion of aliphatic functional groups, possibly as a result of some of the O within maceral ring structures in the high S coal samples being replaced.

Maternal feeding practices and feeding behaviors of Australian children aged 12 to 36 months

Objectives To explore parents' perceptions of the eating behaviors and related feeding practices of their young children. Methods Mothers (N=740) of children aged 12 to 36 months and born in South Australia were randomly selected by birth date in four 6-month age bands from a centralized statewide database and invited to complete a postal questionnaire. Results Valid completed questionnaires were returned for 374 children (51% response rate; 54% female). Although mothers generally reported being confident and happy in feeding their children, 23% often worried that they gave their child the right amount of food. Based on a checklist of 36 specified items, 15% of children consumed no vegetables in the previous 24 hours, 11% no fruit and for a further 8% juice was the only fruit. Of 12 specified high fat/sugar foods and drinks, 11% of children consumed none, 20% one, 26% two, and 43% three or more. Six of eight child-feeding practices that promote healthy eating behaviors were undertaken by 75% parents 'often' or 'all of the time'. However, 8 of 11 practices that do not promote healthy eating were undertaken by a third of mothers at least ‘sometimes’. Conclusions In this representative sample, dietary quality issues emerge early and inappropriate feeding practices are prevalent thus identifying the need for very early interventions that promote healthy food preferences and positive feeding practices. Such programs should focus not just on the 'what', but also the 'how' of early feeding, including the feeding relationship and processes appropriate to developmental stage. Key words: Maternal feeding practices, infants, obesity

Energy density of foods and beverages in the Australian food supply: influence of macronutrients and comparison to dietary intake

Objectives: The energy density (ED) of the diet is considered an important determinant of total energy intake and thus energy balance and weight change. We aimed to compare relationships between ED and macronutrient content in individual food and beverage items as well as population diet in a typical Western country. Design: Nutrient data for 3673 food items and 247 beverage items came from the Australian Food and Nutrient database (AusNut). Food and beverage intake data came from the 1995 Australian National Nutrition Survey (a 24-h dietary recall survey in 13 858 people over the age of 2). Relationships between ED and macronutrient and water content were analysed by linear regression with 95% prediction bands. Results: For both individual food items and population food intake, there was a positive relationship between ED and percent energy as fat and negative relationships between ED and percent energy as carbohydrate and percent water by weight. In all cases, there was close agreement between the slopes of the regression lines between food items and dietary intake. There were no clear relationships between ED and macronutrient content for beverage items. Carbohydrate (mostly sucrose) contributed 91, 47, and 25% of total energy for sugar-based, fat-based, and alcohol-based beverages respectively. Conclusions: The relationship between ED and fat content of foods holds true across both population diets and individual food items available in the food supply in a typical Western country such as Australia. As high-fat diets are associated with a high BMI, population measures with an overall aim of reducing the ED of diets may be effective in mediating the growing problem of overweight and obesity.

Ethnomusicological study of music makers in an Australian military band

This dissertation reports on a study of music making in a band of the Australian Army Band Corps. The thesis of the dissertation is how the world views of the soldier-musicians of the Australian Army Band, Kapooka, are constructed in the context of their work in military music performance. In arguing this thesis, the author provides a brief history of military music in Australia, and - demonstrates how rank and military discipline intersect with music making in the lived experience of the soldier-musicians; - explores how the dichotomy between music making as a craft and music making as art is resolved in a setting where the employer regards music making as a trade, while the soldier-musicians strive to meet artistic goals; - demonstrates how successful music making and successful soldiering are both forms of work which depend upon effective collective action; - demonstrates that while military bands play the widest repertoire of musical styles of any Western music ensemble, the styles converge toward a homogenous, eclectic, military band performance style: and - explores how military music, which may have limited intrinsic interest, in certain ceremonial settings may link with other visual and auditory symbol systems to generate profound meaning both for the soldier-musicians themselves and for their audiences. The study examines the processes by which the world views of soldier-musicians are shaped by the institutional context in which they work, as they participate in a music tradition which has been a powerful agent in the shaping of Australian patriotic traditions. The study uses a naturalistic participant observation methodology. The author worked as an honorary guest civilian member of the band’s trombone section to collect data in the form of fieldnotes and interviews. Data analysis and interpretation was made according to the tenets of grounded theory. Evidence in the form of first hand accounts from the perspective of the researcher and from the soldier-musicians themselves is employed to generate both emic and etic understandings. An understanding of a music culture from the participant's point of view is a central concern of the study.

Cross-sectional analysis of association between socioeconomic status and utilization of primary total hip joint replacements 2006-7 : Australian orthopaedic association national joint replacement registry

Background The utilization of total hip replacement (THR) surgery is rapidly increasing, however few data examine whether these procedures are associated with socioeconomic status (SES) within Australia. This study examined primary THR across SES for both genders for the Barwon Statistical Division (BSD) of Victoria, Australia.

Methods Using the Australian Orthopaedic Association National Joint Replacement Registry data for 2006–7, primary THR with a diagnosis of osteoarthritis (OA) among residents of the BSD was ascertained. The Index of Relative Socioeconomic Disadvantage was used to measure SES; determined by matching residential addresses with Australian Bureau of Statistics census data. The data were categorised into quintiles; quintile 1 indicating the most disadvantaged. Age- and sex-specific rates of primary THR per 1,000 person years were reported for 10-year age bands using the total population at risk.

Results Females accounted for 46.9% of the 642 primary THR performed during 2006–7. THR utilization per 1,000 person years was 1.9 for males and 1.5 for females. The highest utilization of primary THR was observed in those aged 70–79 years (males 6.1, and females 5.4 per 1,000 person years). Overall, the U-shaped pattern of THR across SES gave the appearance of bimodality for both males and females, whereby rates were greater for both the most disadvantaged and least disadvantaged groups.

Conclusions Further work on a larger scale is required to determine whether relationships between SES and THR utilization for the diagnosis of OA is attributable to lifestyle factors related to SES, or alternatively reflects geographic and health system biases. Identifying contributing factors associated with SES may enhance resource planning and enable more effective and focussed preventive strategies for hip OA.

Linking riparian vegetation spatial structure in Australian tropical savannas to ecosystem health indicators: semi-variogram analysis of high spatial resolution satellite imagery

Government agencies responsible for riparian environments are assessing the combined utility of field survey and remote sensing for mapping and monitoring indicators of riparian zone health. The objective of this work was to determine if the structural attributes of savanna riparian zones in northern Australia can be detected from commercially available remotely sensed image data. Two QuickBird images and coincident field data covering sections of the Daly River and the South Alligator River - Barramundie Creek in the Northern Territory were used. Semi-variograms were calculated to determine the characteristic spatial scales of riparian zone features, both vegetative and landform. Interpretation of semi-variograms showed that structural dimensions of riparian environments could be detected and estimated from the QuickBird image data. The results also show that selecting the correct spatial resolution and spectral bands is essential to maximize the accuracy of mapping spatial characteristics of savanna riparian features. The distribution of foliage projective cover of riparian vegetation affected spectral reflectance variations in individual spectral bands differently. Pan-sharpened image data enabled small-scale information extraction (< 6 m) on riparian zone structural parameters. The semi-variogram analysis results provide the basis for an inversion approach using high spatial resolution satellite image data to map indicators of savanna riparian zone health.